Hi all, so we are about to trade our beloved Navigator for a 2002 Beetle. (We cant tow our Navigator with our 345...) and I have a few questions. 1st) I read somewhere on this forum that someone else is towing a beetle with their 345, -- How is it? Does it tow well? Any tips? Things we should do/not do? <br> Tow bars...do I need to have the hitch ball dropped? By how much? <br> Also we have obviously never towed wiyth a Moho before...so I was wondering what Tow Bar should we get? The prices are SOOO different!? I just want to make sure we get the right ones, and not the most expensive...our budget has already taken a hit...anyone has used ones for sale? <br> Specific to our future vw, beetle, are the plates to attach hard to install? Anyone here has experience setting these up on the VW? Which ones should we get? Or which combo tow bar/plates should we use? These are just a few questions that come to mind right now....If anyone has input, wants to add...I would really, REALLY, apprciate it! Thanks!
Get a frame mount hitch, put brakes on car, towd or dolly, and you may pull most anything.
Theres a MH pulling a 'Thing' around the country, I think they are out west.
Should be about the same set up.
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The factory hitch on the 345 is only rated to tow 2,000 lbs, so you will need to replace it with a genuine class IV hitch (at least class III). How you tow will depend on whether you want to go four-down (all four wheels on the ground) which uses a hitch and plate setup that will attach permanently to the Bug. That will also require some kind of braking device for the car. It's expensive, but a one-time investment. Or, like Klattu (and me) use a tow dolly that is about 1/2 the cost, can be used with any car up to the dolly's capacity, and is more of a hassle to use.
Most of the plates require some disassembly of the front-end of the car, and are NOT simple to install. The brand of tow bar you choose depends on how much you want to spend. Given the difference in cost vs. what you're spending on labor, I'd say get the best one you can afford. They'll have different draw bar mounts, depending on the height of your hitch. Contact the manufacturer for specifics.
Roger
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AIR 2053 “A generation which ignores history has no past and no future.” Robert Heinlein 2006 Bigfoot 25B25RQ towed by a 2001 Born Free 23RK moho
You can PM SWEBSTER. He tows a VW with his 345.
We tow a Porsche 912E with ours. We went with the NightShift Auto tow bar to tow 4-down. This tow bar has a surge brake built into it that operates the Porsche's brakes. Works great.
Rob
Get a frame mount hitch, put brakes on car, towd or dolly, and you may pull most anything.
Theres a MH pulling a 'Thing' around the country, I think they are out west.
Should be about the same set up.
That 'Thing' is headed to the 4CU rally in Quartzsite this morning. We will have a pair of 345's, one with a 'Thing' and the other with a Tracker. I think you met them both at the Balloon Fiesta last year. They both tow 4 down.
We use a "Demco Tow Dolly" and with it we have towed a Ford Explorer and Taurus, my Corvette, and now primarily we tow my Wife's VW Jedda Diesel. With the tow dolly you can switch from one vehicle to another without having to install plates or eletrical to the vehicle.
The Demco has "Surge Brakes" which eliminates having to use a "Brake Buddy". Now a lot of folks say its just too much trouble to load up on a tow dolly, but I have helped friends hook up tow bars and brake buddies and I can load up a lot quicker than they can.
One caution, there are a lot of tow dollys on the market without "surge Brakes". Do not buy them. It is now illegal to tow with out brakes.
The original Airstream hitch is a joke. If yours hasn't been modified you need to do that. The original is merely a bumper hitch. Mine is welded to the frame and extends several feet foreward and attached to several cross members.
Just let me add that the only time I can tell I am towing is climbing high hills or mountains. The vehicles we have towed aren't little roller skates either. They are large cars.
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We modified our 310 similar to whats shown in the pictures. Here is a link showing pictures of how we did ours. You'll find that info towards the end fo the thread.
I installed a brake controller in the motorhome and we have towed Susan's (alumatube) Triumph Spitfire using a 14' flatbed trailer that has brakes with no issues. We have also towed our 94 Honda Civic with a towbar and NO additional brakes with no issues as well. However we do plan addressing the no brakes issue in the near future because our new toad is a 93 Mazda pickup that is somewhat heavier than the Honda.
As far as what towbar to get there are a lot of good ones out there. We have one that has arms that lock into position when towing but collapse making it easier to hook the car up initially. I would highly recommend that style. Remember you get what you pay for.
I think you'll find that the motorhome does great as a tow vehicle
Brad
__________________ "Wherever you go... there you are." - Buckaroo Banzai
Air forums # 1674
1984 310 Limited Motorhome
1974 31' Excella 500 (future hauler for 2 Triumph race cars)
1974 20' Argosy Motorhome (future Excella 500 tow vehicle)
oh...all these answers! We were hoping to tow 4 down, robfike, your setup seems exactly like what we had in mind, could you send me a link to the direct/exact system you have in place? I see so many diff ones on their websites...confusing!! Also, do I have to get the hitch modified? Who does that? Anyone know a good mechanic/tow specialist in the Shelton CT area? Thanks a bunch...
Also, do I have to get the hitch modified? Who does that? Anyone know a good mechanic/tow specialist in the Shelton CT area? Thanks a bunch...
I would definitely have your hitch modified. Look at the pictures in the links that I provided earlier and then look under your motorhome to make to see if possibly someone might have already done so. If not I highly recommend modifying your hitch as shown. I did the modification myself but if you find a good fabrication shop and take the pictures to them they should be able to duplicate the work.
Good luck!
Brad
__________________ "Wherever you go... there you are." - Buckaroo Banzai
Air forums # 1674
1984 310 Limited Motorhome
1974 31' Excella 500 (future hauler for 2 Triumph race cars)
1974 20' Argosy Motorhome (future Excella 500 tow vehicle)
we got a manual tranny, as I read it was best to have to tow on 4....is that right? I will take pictures of the underbelly of our 345, and post them here...maybe one of you guys can tell me if that setup is ok>? Thanks!!
What is it with AS & VeeDubs...peace to ya!)
We tow a 71-73 VW bus w/ 4 down, made the towbar myself. Wish it folded flat against front of the bus, but removes in less than 1 minute.
Also have a tow dolly. I like the 4-down better, but as mentioned, the dolly can be used for different cars and also to help a "friend" out if they break down.
Here is our hitch setup..can someone tell us if we can tow our beetle!?
Hi, here are pics of the hitch receiver setup on our 345... I tried my best to get pictures that would show how it is attached etc...anyone can tell us if it seems fit to tow our vw beetle? Thanks! PS. As you can see from the pictures, PO had it already wired...so i assume it should be ok? Am just afraid of tow rating etc...
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